Saturday Night Live 25th Anniversary Special

"*Saturday Night Live* 25th Anniversary Special"
"Saturday Night Live 25th Anniversary Special"
Saturday Night Live episode
Directed by	Beth McCarthy-Miller
Narrated by	Don Pardo
Produced by	Lorne Michaels
Original air date	September 26, 1999
Running time	2 hr 41 minutes
	List of episodes

"Saturday Night Live 25th Anniversary Special" (also billed as "Saturday Night Live 25") is a three-hour prime-time special that aired on September 26, 1999, on NBC, celebrating Saturday Night Live's 25th year on the air, having premiered on October 11, 1975, under the original title NBC's Saturday Night.^[1]^[2] The New York Times wrote of the special, "In defiance of both time and show business convention, SNL is still the most pervasive influence on the art of comedy in contemporary culture."^[3]

This special was preceded by the 15th Anniversary Special (1989) and preceded by the 40th Anniversary Special (2014). The 25th special received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations including a win for the Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special and a Writers Guild of America Award for Television: Best Comedy/Variety – Specials.^[4]

Synopsis[edit]

Summary[edit]

Sketch	Notes
Cold Open	Bill Murray opens the show with a musical melody and talks to audience members Jerry Seinfeld, Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Drew Barrymore, Garrett Morris, and Paul Shaffer. Dan Aykroyd and Lorraine Newman appear as Mr. Chief Redsky and his niece Natasha.
Opening Monologue	Chris Rock delivers the opening monologue
Schmitt's Gay sketch	Adam Sandler and Chris Farley appear in a pre-taped sketch
"Questions from the Audience" segment	Tom Hanks answers questions from the audience including Garth Brooks, Jon Lovitz, Christopher Walken, Sarah Michelle Gellar, James Van Der Beek, and Victoria Jackson.
Montage of Will Ferrell sketches	Tom Hanks introduces a sketch of sketches featuring Will Ferrell
Tribute to the first 5 years of SNL	The Three Amigos reunion with Steve Martin, Martin Short and Chevy Chase reunite to present a tribute to the first 5 years of SNL
Tribute to John Belushi	Dan Aykroyd and Lorraine Newman present a tribute to fellow cast member John Belushi
Introduce the Eurythmics	Jerry Seinfeld and David Bowie introduce Eurythmics as they are the respective host and musical guest for the following weekend
Tribute to Gilda Radner	Molly Shannon and Cheri Oteri present a tribute to former cast member Gilda Radner
Fernando Lamas sketch	Billy Crystal reprises his role as Fernando Lamas and makes jokes towards Steve Martin, Chris Rock, Susan Sarandon, Gary Busey, Glenn Close, Susan St. James and Danny DeVito.
Dr. Evil Sketch	Mike Meyers, Lorne Michaels, Tim Meadows, and Kevin Spacey act in a pre-taped sketch where the discuss the creation of Dr. Evil.
Montage of clips 1985-1990	Mike Meyers introudces a montage package of clips from 1985 to 1990.
Tribute to Phil Hartman	Mike Meyers, Jon Lovitz, Jan Hooks, Victoria Jackson, Kevin Nealon, and Dennis Miller present a tribute to Hartman featuring the pre-taped short film “Love is a Dream” featuring Hartman and Hooks.
"Behind the Scenes" montage	Jimmy Fallon presents a pre-taped Behind the Scenes at SNL montage
Tribute to the writers	Adam Sandler, Jim Downey, Robert Smigel, and Tim Hurley present a tribute to the writers
Montage of clips 1990-1995	Lily Tomlin and Candice Bergen present a montage of SNL clips from 1990 to 1995.
Tribute to Chris Farley	David Spade presents a tribute to friend and former cast member Chris Farley
"The Culps" Musical sketch	Will Ferrell and Ana Gasteyer reprise their roles as Marty and Bobbi Mohan-Culp.
Weekend Update tribute	Chevy Chase, Dennis Miller, Norm MacDonald introduce a montage to Weekend Update.
"TV Funhouse" cartoon	Alec Baldwin introduces a new TV Funhouse cartoon by Robert Smigel honoring Lorne Michaels
Hans and Franz sketch	Pre-taped sketch Dana Carvey and Kevin Nealon reprise their roles as Hans and Franz
Musical performance	Garrett Morris and Tim Meadows introduce Rev. Al Green who sings "I’m Still In Love With You".
SNL Goodbyes	Dan Aykroyd, Jon Lovitz, and John Goodman invite the cast and crew to take a photo on stage

Musical performances[edit]

The show included musical performances by:

Eurythmics, introduced by Jerry Seinfeld and David Bowie, performed "Here Comes the Rain Again"
The Beastie Boys performed "Sabotage"
Elvis Costello performed "Radio Radio"
Al Green, introduced by Garrett Morris and Tim Meadows, performed "I’m Still In Love With You"

In Memoriam[edit]

Throughout the show following were paid tribute to:

Guest appearances[edit]

All performers were credited as repertory:^[5]^[6]^[7]

Audience members[edit]

Also in attendance included numerous actors, musicians, comedians, and celebrities such as:^[8]^[9]^[10]

Awards and nominations[edit]

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2000	Directors Guild of America Awards	Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Musical/Variety	Beth McCarthy-Miller	Nominated	^[11]
2000	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special	Saturday Night Live 25th Anniversary Special	Won	^[12]
		Outstanding Directing for a Variety or Music Program	Beth McCarthy-Miller	Nominated
		Outstanding Art Direction for a Variety or Music Program	N. Joseph DeTullio, Eugene Lee, Keith Ian Raywood, and Akira Yoshimura	Nominated
		Outstanding Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video for a Special	Michael Bennett, Steven Cimino, Carl Eckett, Eric A. Eisenstein, Frank Grisanti, Jan Kasoff, James Mott, Stephen Murello, Susan Noll, and John Pinto	Nominated
		Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Variety Series or Special	Robert Palladino, Bill Taylor, Chris Seeger, Marty Brumbach, and Jay Vicari	Nominated
2001	Writers Guild of America Awards	Best Comedy/Variety – Specials	Tina Fey, Anne Beatts, Tom Davis, Steve Higgins, Lorne Michaels, Marilyn Suzanne Miller, Paula Pell, Paul Shaffer, T. Sean Shannon, Michael Shoemaker, and Robert Smigel	Won	^[13]

References[edit]

^ "Saturday Night Live 25th Anniversary Special". AV Club. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE 25". MUBI. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "Saturday Night Live Celebrates 40 Years of Laughs". Comcast. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "Saturday Night Live 25 Awards". IMDB. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "Saturday Night Live 25th Anniversary Special". Internet Archive. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "Saturday Night Live 25". IMDB. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "'Saturday Night Live' reunites comedians for 25th anniversary". CNN. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "STARS PACK 'SNL' BASH – LAUGHS AND SORROW ON 25TH ANNIVERSARY". New York Post. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "SNL 25 (Behind the scenes: Exclusive)". Youtube. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "STARS OUT TO CELEBRATE 'SNL' CELEBRITIES RIVAL SHOW HIGHLIGHTS". The New York Daily News. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "52nd Annual DGA Awards". Directors Guild of America. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "2000 - 52nd Emmy Awards". Television Academy. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
^ "Writers Guild of America 2001 Awards". IMDb. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

External links[edit]

Saturday Night Live 25th Anniversary Special at IMDb

[1] "Saturday Night Live 25th Anniversary Special". AV Club. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[2] "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE 25". MUBI. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[3] "Saturday Night Live Celebrates 40 Years of Laughs". Comcast. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[4] "Saturday Night Live 25 Awards". IMDB. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[5] "Saturday Night Live 25th Anniversary Special". Internet Archive. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[6] "Saturday Night Live 25". IMDB. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[7] "'Saturday Night Live' reunites comedians for 25th anniversary". CNN. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[8] "STARS PACK 'SNL' BASH – LAUGHS AND SORROW ON 25TH ANNIVERSARY". New York Post. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[9] "SNL 25 (Behind the scenes: Exclusive)". Youtube. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[10] "STARS OUT TO CELEBRATE 'SNL' CELEBRITIES RIVAL SHOW HIGHLIGHTS". The New York Daily News. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[11] "52nd Annual DGA Awards". Directors Guild of America. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[12] "2000 - 52nd Emmy Awards". Television Academy. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

[13] "Writers Guild of America 2001 Awards". IMDb. Retrieved June 6, 2024.

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v t e Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded)
1959–1975	An Evening with Fred Astaire (1959) Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic (1960) No Award (1961) Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic in Japan (1962) Julie and Carol at Carnegie Hall (1963) The Bell Telephone Hour (1964) No Award (1965) Chrysler Presents the Bob Hope Christmas Special / Frank Sinatra: A Man and His Music (1966) Brigadoon / The Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, Carl Reiner, Morris Special (1967) Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1968) The Bill Cosby Special (1969) Annie, the Women in the Life of a Man / Cinderella, National Ballet of Canada (1970) Singer Presents Burt Bacharach / Leopold Stokowski, N.E.T. Festival (1971) Jack Lemmon in 'S Wonderful, 'S Marvelous, 'S Gershwin / Beethoven's Birthday: A Celebration in Vienna with Leonard Bernstein (1972) Singer Presents Liza with a Z (1973) Lily (1974) An Evening with John Denver (1975)
1976–2000	Gypsy in My Soul (1976) The Barry Manilow Special (1977) Bette Midler: Ol' Red Hair is Back (1978) No Award (1979–1989) Sammy Davis Jr.'s 60th Anniversary Celebration (1990) No Award (1991) Cirque Du Soleil: Nouvelle Expérience (1992) Bob Hope: The First 90 Years (1993) Kennedy Center Honors (1994) Barbra Streisand: The Concert (1995) Kennedy Center Honors (1996) Chris Rock: Bring the Pain (1997) 52nd Tony Awards (1998) 53rd Tony Awards (1999) Saturday Night Live: The 25th Anniversary Special (2000)
2001–present	Cirque Du Soleil's Dralion (2001) America: A Tribute to Heroes (2002) Cher: The Farewell Tour (2003) Elaine Stritch: At Liberty (2004) 58th Tony Awards (2005) The XX Olympic Winter Games: Opening Ceremony (2006) Tony Bennett: An American Classic (2007) Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project (2008) Kennedy Center Honors (2009) Kennedy Center Honors (2010) Kennedy Center Honors (2011) Kennedy Center Honors (2012) Kennedy Center Honors (2013) AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Mel Brooks (2014) Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special (2015) The Late Late Show Carpool Karaoke Primetime Special (2016) Carpool Karaoke Primetime Special 2017 (2017) Dave Chappelle: Equanimity (2018) Carpool Karaoke: When Corden Met McCartney Live From Liverpool (2019) Dave Chappelle: Sticks & Stones (2020) Hamilton (2021) Adele One Night Only (2022) Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love (2023)